MARK O'CONNOR AND

THE O'CONNOR BAND

Guest Artist Sierra Hull

Germantown Performing Arts Center

January 13, 2018

L to R: Maggie O'Connor, Mark O'Connor, Jeff Saunders, Sierra Hull

Forrest O'Connor, Ethan Jodziewicz,, Joe Smart, Kate O'Connor

     BLUEGRASS, FOLK, and AMERICANA MUSIC fans will strike out in just about any weather conditions to see and hear their heroes. Such was the case with us as we inched our way on ice to and from Germantown Performing Arts Center (GPAC) in Germantown, TN. Snow and ice, along with bitter cold winds, had struck West Tennessee, but we would not be denied. Here were some of the very best in the business, and we risked life and limb to be there.

 

Sierra Hull and Ethan Jodziewicz

     SIERRA HULL was the first to appear on this cold evening. The Byrdstown, TN, native served as the warm-up band, but she is no warm-up artist. The diminutive mandolin player stands tall among other mandolin artists. Bass player ETHAN JODZIEWICZ, who accompanied Sierra, is every bit as amazing. The two artists provided a seamless set and kept the audience spellbound. We can only take a stab at song titles, because the selections either were not introduced or we could not understand the titles. Apologies to the artists and to you the reader as we stumble through the list of songs: North Country, I'll Always Be Waiting for You, Down on Your Luck, Don't Give a F***, Human Heart, O Patrick Won't You Be My Savior, Let It Go, and Donegal (Great Big Sea?) We look forward to hearing Sierra and Ethan again soon. They are amazing young artists!

     MARK O'CONNOR (fiddle, guitar, mandolin, bass, vocals) heads the O'Connor Band. He is a seasoned professional with 40 years out on the road with his fiddle. His band mates are family, with the exception of JEFF SAUNDERS (bass and banjo) and JOE SMART (guitar). MAGGIE O'CONNOR (fiddle and vocals) is classically trained in violin (fiddle to us) and she is Mark's wife. FORREST O'CONNOR (mandolin, guitar, vocals) is Mark's son. Forrest is married to KATE LEE (now Kate O'Connor, fiddle and vocals). Forrest and Kate were the duo known as WISEWATER, an Americana band we heard at the Franklin (TN) Theatre a few years back. Mark O'Connor and The O'Connor Band are polished, fast and fine.

     The set for the evening was as follows: It's in My Blood, Muleskinner Blues, Jerusalem Ridge, Restless, Coming Home (a chart-buster on their Grammy-winning Best Bluegrass Album), Blacktop Boy, Macedonia (twin mandolins with Mark and Forrest O'Connor), Old Black Creek, You Haven't Said You Love Me in a While, Ruby Are You Mad at Your Man, Little Maggie, What Have I Been Saying, Those Memories, Johnny B. Goode (bluegrass-style), and a smokin' encore with the entire band plus Sierra Hull and Ethan Jodziewicz.

L to R: Maggie O'Connor, Mark O'Connor, Jeff Saunders, Sierra Hull,

Forrest O'Connor, Ethan Jodziewicz, Joe Smart, Kate O'Connor

We heartily recommend all the artists from the evening of wonderful, fast-paced music.

 

For more information: www.oconnorband.com  Google the artists to learn more about their music and their touring schedules.